Mental Health Checklist for Stressful Situations

What's going on at HealthyPlace this week?

• Mental Health Checklist for Stressful Situations
• From the HealthyPlace Mental Health Blogs
• How I Knew My Therapist Was the Right One for Me
• Most Popular HealthyPlace Articles Shared by Facebook Fans
• Quote About Feeling Isolated Because of Mental Illness

Stress interferes with mental health and how we live life. Even though it may be hard, we all have the ability to deal positively with stress, maintain mental health, and move forward. (Take this online stress test to see your level of stress.)

Regardless of what you are facing, use this mental health checklist for stressful situations to help you stay calm when faced with difficulties beyond your control.

• Are you remembering to turn off your body’s stress reaction? Take several slow, deep breaths to replace your fight-or-flight nervous system response to the calm, rest-and-digest one.
• Are you focusing on what is important to you? Problems easily dominate our attention, which can make us stuck. Remind yourself of your values and priorities for mental centering in times of stress.
• Have you identified one small action you can take to move you a step farther away from the problem? Action is empowering, but it can be difficult. Think in terms of small steps toward what you want and pick one thing to work on right away.
• Are you practicing acceptance of what you can’t control? Accepting what you can’t control doesn’t mean giving up. Letting go of a struggle helps free you to shift your focus and take positive action.
• Are you paying attention to the present moment? Stress can trap us in anxious thoughts about the past or future. Stay grounded by turning your attention to something positive (or neutral) about your current moment.
• Are you treating yourself with loving-kindness and respect? Remind yourself that you are dealing with a bad situation the best way you can right now. Identifying what you’re doing right is empowering.

While this mental health checklist for stressful situations won’t automatically solve problems, it will keep you centered and focused so you can choose how to deal with them.

Recommended Video

How to Use Tapping to Calm Anxiety Tutorial - You can use tapping to calm anxiety. In this tutorial, find out how tapping, or the Emotional Freedom Technique, calms uncomfortable feelings by tapping acupressure points. Watch.

Articles on Stress and Stress Relief

• Breathing Exercises to Reduce Stress
• Need Self-Help for Stress? Try These Tips
• Stressed at Work? Try These 5 Stress-Relief Techniques
• The Different Kinds of Stress
• Self-Help Stress Management

Today's Question: How do you take care of your mental health when you are stressed? We invite you to participate by sharing your thoughts, experiences, and knowledge on the HealthyPlace Facebook page.

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From the HealthyPlace Mental Health Blogs

On all our blogs, your comments and observations are welcomed.

• My Cat Is Positive Companionship and Helps My Mental Health
• Applying for the Disability Tax Credit Is Winning
• Depression Can Take Procrastination to a Whole New Level
• Do Not Hurt Yourself: A Letter to My Past Self
• How Verbal Abuse from Mothers Affects Sons
• Comfort Foods and Depression
• Goodbye, 'Relationships and Mental Illness' Blog
• When an Eating Disorder Masks a Fear of Rejection
• When Technology Makes You Anxious
• Emotional Regulation and Self-Harm Recovery
• How Pacifism Helps with My Schizoaffective Suicidal Ideation

Feel free to share your thoughts and comments at the bottom of any blog post. And visit the mental health blogs homepage for the latest posts.

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From the HealthyPlace YouTube Channel

Finding the right mental health therapist can be a challenge. Kelly discusses how she knew her therapist was a good fit for her. Take a look.

Subscribe to the HealthyPlace YouTube channel

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Most Popular HealthyPlace Articles Shared by Facebook Fans

Here are the top 3 mental health articles HealthyPlace Facebook fans are recommending you read:

1. How Verbal Abuse from Fathers Affects Sons
2. My Final 'More than Borderline' Blog Post
3. Can the Government Stop Mental Health Stigma?

If you haven't already, I hope you'll like us on Facebook too. There are a lot of wonderful, supportive people there.

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Quote About Feeling Isolated Because of Mental Illness

“My past is an armor I cannot take off, no matter how many times you tell me the war is over.”

Read more quotes about feeling isolated.

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That's it for now. If you know of anyone who can benefit from this newsletter or the HealthyPlace.com site, I hope you'll pass this onto them. Please share the newsletter on any social network you belong to. For updates throughout the week, follow us on Twitter, like us on Facebook, subscribe to our YouTube channel, or follow us on Instagram.

Thank you,
Deborah

Community Partner Team
HealthyPlace.com - America's Mental Health Channel
"When you're at HealthyPlace.com, you're never alone."
http://www.healthyplace.com